Supporting social work supervisors through coaching with compassion: The potential use of Intentional Change Theory (ICT)

An abundance of literature exists on the emotional well-being of the social worker, with numerous mentions made of supervision as a counterpoise to burnout, yet scant attention is paid to the emotional state of the supervisor. The supervisor has the organisational role of container of emotions, but who contains the container? As such this research aims to garner insight into the main challenges supervisors face and explore the plausibility of instituting coaching with compassion as a form of support. To cast light on the experiences of social work supervisors a qualitative study was employed, anchored in an exploratory, descriptive, interpretivist paradigm. A non-probability, purposive sampling practice was applied within this study, with a total of 26 participants which included 3 participant groups: 18 supervisors, 4 directors/ policy makers and 4 coaches. Most participants were interviewed over MS Teams and a smaller number interviewed in person. Thematic analysis was utilised to develop key themes within two major sections, namely the challenges supervisors face and the second section explored the need for intervention among supervisors. Findings of this research indicate that the supervisor experiences a myriad of challenges and operates in a complex system that is defined by a polycrisis. Analysing this within the context of complexity theory, all factors within a system exhibit entanglement and influence each other, adding to the intricacy and interplay of multiple challenges. The influence of factors emanating from the macro level has a cascading effect on meso and micro-level factors, directly impacting the supervisor. This has resulted in the supervisor facing daily crises, consequently, the supervisor is in a perpetual state of anxiety, with constant trials forcing a prioritisation of action over introspection. These factors give credibility to the notion that the supervisor is in dire need of emotional support, and coaching with compassion is a well-placed intervention. This coaching model, utilising studies in neuroscience, is primed for coaching with compassion, not compliance, offering the supervisor space to pause, reflect and connect with their emotions so that they can utilise the appropriate brain states to awaken a sense of purpose and find an inspired, vibrant vision for the future.

Grantor dc:publisher

Stellenbosch : Stelelnbosch University

Year dc:date.issued

2026

Author dc:creator

• Joseph, Debora

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Engelbrecht, Lambert

Language dc:language.iso

en

Repository record dc:identifier.uri

https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/136100

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/136100